DEEP WATERS

Okay, so let me just say this: I have a love/hate relationship with reality television. I have wept over performances on The Voice and So You Think You Can Dance . The beauty I've seen in the fresh talent on shows like that has left me amazed and, at times, in tears. But as the Mama of four kiddos with so much to do and so little time, I just can't commit to reality tv. I just don't have the time to tune every week to see if the girl with the fiery voice or the guy who floats through the air like an Alvin Ailey dancer makes it through to the next level. I just don't have that kind of time... And then there's the reality television that eventually reveals the depths of every character's worst flaws -- a la Jersey Shore . You know, the kind that makes you say, "Wow, at least I'm not that much of a loser..." I personally despise that kind of reality tv. So, it was with much fear and trepidation that I watched the first episode of TLC...

I recently heard some great news from Alicen Bennett, an Arkansas Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) caseworker and DCFS liaison to The CALL *. This past January, 28 foster homes opened in Arkansas, meaning in that month alone 28 new families became available to take foster children into their care. A blessing, considering all the hoops that these families must go through -- background checks, medical exams, home studies and training classes. On the same day I heard that great news, however, I also heard some bad news. While 28 foster homes opened in January, 48 homes closed. Do you understand what that means? While 28 foster families have just opened their homes to foster children that desperately need those stable home environments, 48  foster families have closed their homes to those same children that desperately need them. Here's one more statistic: In 2012, 500 homes opened across the state of Arkansas. Sadly, in 2012, 480 homes close...

I've never claimed to predict the future, but I've got a good feeling about tomorrow. I think my Baltimore Ravens  are going to pull it off tomorrow. And I think Linebacker Ray Lewis  will get MVP of Superbowl XLVII. And even if he doesn't, he's MVP in my book. You know why? Because he's a man of God who loves donning t-shirts  with bible references like Psalm 91. And because of quotes like these: "Listen to what people say you can't do, and then GO DO IT." How many of us have heard people tell us what we can't do? Maybe they think we're too young or too old, or too short or too tall, or we belong to the wrong gender or race. Or maybe we're aspiring to do something we've never done before. Maybe the voices that tell us what we can't do are in our own heads. Sometimes we're actually our own worst critic. Whoever the critic may be, we've got to press on with whatever God's called us to do. We've got t...